Sixty years on the road, musical band of brothers play the Corner House

Music fans in the city are in for a treat this Thursday evening, as a musical band of brothers on the road more than 60 years takes to the stage in The Corner House on Coburg St.

Fermoy brothers Brian and Paud O’Reilly have been playing together since the early 1960s, when they formed The Wizards, and they have been better known since 1968, when they changed the name of the band to Loudest Whisper.

Brian O’Reilly told The Echo that when they started out, they had “no instruments to speak of”, playing in the tennis club in Fermoy on guitars while their first drummer, Jimmy Cotter, banged on biscuit tins for percussion.

“In the early 1960s, it was all showbands in the country, but we wanted to be like the Beatles and the Stones, so we started learning songs from the Beatles, the Stones, Bob Dylan, the Byrds, and it evolved from there,” he said.

“And then in 1968, we changed the name to Loudest Whisper.” 

Over the years, the band has recorded several bestselling albums and entertained generations of fans, their line-up changing multiple times, with Brian and Paud remaining constants.

They are still playing, with Brian 78 now and Paud 80. Brian lives most of the year in Spain now, so their gigs are rare enough, something which suits them.

The band is streamlined down to a three-piece now, with bassist Paul McCarthy.

“There’s no dossing in a three-piece,” Paud joked.

This Thursday evening’s performance in the Corner House is always a highlight of the band’s year, Brian said.

“It’s always a great gig, and as long as people keep coming to the gigs, sure we’ll bop till we drop.” 

Loudest Whisper play at the Lee Delta Blues Club in the Corner House on Coburg St at 9.30pm on Thursday, August 28; 8pm on Friday 29 at St George’s Church, Mitchelstown; 8pm on Saturday 30 at Hackett’s Bar, Kilkenny; and at 6.30pm on Sunday 31 at the Blackbird Bar, Ballycotton.